Abstract
In this paper, we present the results of a preliminary study on the self-powered autonomous wireless sensor node by using thermoelectric energy generator based on Silicon (Si) thermoelectric legs, energy management integrated circuit (EMIC), Radio Frequency (RF) module with a temperature and humidity sensor, etc. A novel thermoelectric module structure is designed as an energy generator module, which consists of 127 pairs of Silicon legs and this module is fabricated and tested to demonstrate the feasibility of generating electrical power under the temperature gradient of 70K. EMIC has three key features besides high efficiency, which are maximum power point tracking (MPPT), cold start, and complete self-power operation. EMIC achieved a cold start voltage of 200 mV, peak efficiency of 78.7%, MPPT efficiency 99.4%, and an output power of 34 mW through only the Thermoelectric Generator (TEG) source. To assess the capability of the device as a small scale power source for internet of things (IoT) service, we also tested energy conversion and storage experiments. Finally, the proposed sensor node system which can transmit and monitor the information from the temperature and humidity sensor through the RF module in real time demonstrates the feasibility for variable applications.
Highlights
With the recent progress of mobile technologies and remote sensing systems, internet of things (IoT) has been of great interest due to their potential to create a large market and their significant impact on human life [1,2,3,4]
For easy mass production, low cost, and rare harmfulness, we report on the performance of thermoelectric generator module based hetero-structured Si legs, energy management integrated circuit (EMIC), and a wireless sensor node system with Radio Frequency (RF) module and temperature and humidity sensor
In order to test whether the power generated by the proposed silicon thermoelectric module and EMIC is applicable to IOT and Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) applications, we proposed RF module with an low power
Summary
With the recent progress of mobile technologies and remote sensing systems, internet of things (IoT) has been of great interest due to their potential to create a large market and their significant impact on human life [1,2,3,4]. In realizing various IoT services, one of the main problems yet to be solved is the finite power capacity of batteries in sensor nodes. Fixed energy sources, such as batteries and fuel cells, are bulky with a finite amount of energy and have serious disadvantages such as limited lifetime, periodic recharging or replacement, and use of hazardous chemicals. Conversion of environmental heat to electrical energy has been actively studied using a variety of thermoelectric materials, and in particular there have been many attempts to apply various materials [14,15,16,17,18,19] to thermoelectric generator recently.
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